Customs agents seize giant beetles

Customs agents in Philadelphia seized more than two dozen potentially harmful giant beetles - some the size of a child's hand - from an overseas package after postal workers heard the insects scratching.

The large bugs arrived last week from Taiwan at a postal facility in Mohnton, about 50 miles northwest of Philadelphia, in a box whose contents were labeled as toys, gifts and jellies, officials said yesterday.

But the postmaster suspected the contents were alive and notified authorities, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency. The package was sent to Philadelphia, where it was X-rayed and opened.

"The specimens were some of the largest of their kind, and some of the largest I've ever seen, averaging 5 to 6 inches in diameter," John Plummer, an agency agriculture specialist, said in a statement yesterday. "They are highly destructive insect pests that can cause extensive damage to fruit and vegetable crops, trees, shrubs and turf grasses."

In all, authorities found 26 Hercules, rhinoceros and goliath beetles. It is illegal to ship live beetles into the United States without a permit from the Department of Agriculture.

Seven of the beetles were in containers labeled by sex, which means they could have been intended for breeding, customs agency spokesman Steve Sapp said.

The sender and recipient have been identified, Sapp said. An investigation is under way, but no decision had been made on whether to file charges, he said.